Image: Part 2

 Image: Part 2

In Marathi, image is called Pratima. Speaking of Pratima I was reminded of a beautiful bhavgeet recorded in the voice of Lata Mangeshkar. The poet of this song is D V Keskar.

Bhavgeet is generally a romantic song between a man and woman. However often we see songs in this genre that are inclined towards spiritual love.

The present song is purportedly being sung by the lady who is professing her love and describing the image of her beloved that she cherishes in her mind. She is separated from him but sees him in the subtlest forms of beauty in things around her in his physical absence. In her heart she longs to be with him and hopes this desire will someday be fulfilled. For the present time she is happy to simply hold the love for him in her heart and expresses her musings about her feelings.

Pratima uri dharoni mi preeti geet gavay 

Holding (your) picture (image) in my heart, I wish to sing the song of love

Te geet preeti che re haluvar mi mhanavay 

That song of love I would sing very softly.

Asfut bhavananchya swapnaat goong vhavay 

I would want to simply lose myself in the dreams of (my) deepest feelings.

Asfut is a beautiful word in Marathi that refers to that which is yet to be opened and revealed, like the flower in the form of a bud. The flower in this stage is implicit. Perhaps only it knows what’s inside and waiting to be expressed in a short time.

Pushpat gandh jaisa geetat bhaav taisa

The emotion in the song is similar to the fragrance in a flower 

Advait preeti che he mam jeevani asavay 

May this uniqueness of love pervade my life always.

She realizes how special love is and what a wonderful privilege it is to experience and hold in her heart. So she wishes for it to be there through her entire life.

Tu saptarang dhanuche swar saat baasariche 

You are the seven colors of the rainbow and the seven notes of the flute

Sangeet jeeavanache aalavit mi basavay 

My hope is to incessantly play the music of life in my heart

Ka Rohinis vatay Chandra savay asaavay 

Why does Rohini yearn to be in the company of Chandra( the moon)?

( in Hindu mythology Rohini is the wife of the moon. In astronomy it is a star in the Taurus constellation( lunar mansion). 

He bhaav chitra apuray sakar tu karavay 

May you, my beloved, bring completeness to this, as yet incomplete, emotional picture(dream). 

May you make this dream a reality.

This poem is a major treat for a mind inclined towards love in any form, whether romantic or spiritual. I am going to delve into it with the spiritual consideration in mind.

From that perspective, the one speaking in the poem would be an ardent devotee. The one she is talking about is the Supreme Being or Ultimate Reality. Common way to refer to this is as God.

For a devotee, there is no difference between manifest and unmanifest God. Sagun and Nirgun Bramha are one and the same entity for such devotee. As Dnyaneshwar famously said in one of his abhangas:

Sagun Nirgun Eku Govindu re!

The deity occupies the devotee’s thoughts all the time. There may be one primarily accepted image of the deity for the purpose of mental focus. But the understanding about the deity extends much beyond that single image. In fact it spans the entire creation and beyond. Occasionally the devotee may fancy a physical proximity to the deity. But that is simply playfulness. At the heart the devotee touches upon the essence and through that deep connection there is never a distance between the devotee and the deity. They never stand apart from each other.

Through its imagery the song covers almost every aspect of Bhakti Yoga. The yearning for closeness to the idol. Recognizing his presence in the finer things of everyday life such as the fragrance in flowers, colors of the rainbow, musical notes in a flute. Immersing oneself in the loving remembrance of the idol. Through such emotional surrender keeping attention singularly focused on that point. Being aware that the emotions of love for the divine are as sublime as divinity itself and that they are to be simply experienced within oneself. They lie beyond the boundaries of words and therefore best to not be expressed out in the open. They are best lived in their unexposed state.

Asfut bhavananchya swapnaat goong vhavay 

This for me is the most beautiful line in the whole poem. 

 A flower is tender. But it is even more tender when it is unopened, still in a bud form, standing on that threshold of becoming known to the world but not there yet. To be able to nurture and experience all life long the most tender of feelings towards the divine being like the delicate presence of a bud, is a rare privilege. Less talk and deep understanding is the hallmark of asfut bhavana! This begins to sink in with time for the devotee. 

With deepening understanding of what God or divinity really means, these feelings become instrumental in shaping a devotee’s relationship and interaction with the world. Thus, even though the devotee may isolate themselves from the world to focus on and experience the ultimate reality in its unmanifest or Nirgun form, eventually they cannot distance themselves from the manifest world knowing fully well that this world is nothing but a physical form of the one who is so dear to the heart. 

It is just a natural thing to happen that the song of love and music of life should settle in the devotee’s heart and lips without being explicit. 

Pratima uri dharoni mi preeti geet gavay…….